Can CISPA Be Fixed?

from the perhaps-not dept

We've been arguing for quite some time now that we'd like to see the actual evidence for why a "cybersecurity" bill is actually needed. We've heard fearmongering and warnings of planes falling from the skies, but no evidence that there's a real problem here -- or, if there is a problem, that it needs a legislative solution. And yet, still, CISPA moves forward. Of course, while we still believe that some amendments could fixsome of the more egregious problems with CISPA, there is still the big question of whether or not it's needed at all. Larry Downes has taken on the question of whether or not CISPA can be fixed and has decided that it cannot be, and that it represents a real threat to some key elements of the internet ecosystem. He lists out some key rules for policy makers (and goes into great detail on each, so click through):

Don’t legislate technology using definitions that are either too specific or too general

Don’t legislate technology until you can articulate concrete and calculable harms

Don’t encourage or require information sharing with the government unless it’s unavoidable

All of this seems quite reasonable... which is why it's an uphill battle to get people to follow through on it.